


hogsmeade day

by louminosity



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Orchestra, Alternate Universe - Summer Camp, Bisexual Padma Patil, F/F, LGBTQ Character of Color, Multi, Not Beta Read, Pansexual Luna Lovegood, Podcast: Fanatical Fics and Where to Find Them, Polyamory, little to no focus on actual orchestra things whoops, orchestra camp au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2020-07-06
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:26:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25104664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/louminosity/pseuds/louminosity
Summary: If you asked Padma, she would tell you that Hogsmeade Day was a bit ridiculous.
Relationships: Luna Lovegood/Padma Patil, Penelope Clearwater/Marcus Flint/Audrey Weasley/Percy Weasley/Oliver Wood
Kudos: 9





	hogsmeade day

**Author's Note:**

> this was originally a submission to the fanatical fic's patreon discord writing challege, where the prompts were an LGBTQ+ character, competing summer camps, and a rock.
> 
> disclaimer: i've never been to orchestra/band camp and i haven't played in an orchestra in a few years so pls be gentle with me with any wrong details
> 
> hope you enjoy!

Padma knocked on the cabin's bathroom door. She hoped it didn't sound too impatient. "Luna? Have you finished? You know Penelope is going to have our heads if we're late to the show and after today's events, I'd like to minimize being around her right now."

As much as Padma would like nothing more than being alone with Luna, being the first line of defense for the camp's territory for capture the flag on Hogsmeade Day had tired her out very much. When she first came to the Hogsmeade Orchestra Summer Camp all those years ago, she though summers would be filled to the brim with masterclasses, rehearsals, new sheet music, sliding music stands, annoying viola jokes, and a frenzied race to first chair. (Granted, there was plenty of all of that. She was only slightly bitter that Marcus Flint beat her out for first chair _again_ this summer. Only slightly.)

What she didn't account for (nor did the brochure mention) was the huge rivalry between their camp and the band camp a mile down the road. According to "legend," the two camps were originally one. But, two of the four "founders," Salazar Slytherin and Godric Gryffindor (a violinist and horn player, respectively) had a disagreement and the camp was ultimately split in two. To this day, no one is 100% sure what the disagreement was. The prevailing rumor, as spread by older campers and some camp counselors, was that the founders were under the influence of several recreational substances and during one of their "creativity retreats" and that's why no one can remember.

Whatever the case was, it was tradition to have the last day of camp dedicated to competitions against the other camp, decreed Hogsmeade Day. The morning would start with its usual ceremony and then it was one game and competition after another, each assigning a certain amount of points to the winner. All of the day's efforts were to see which camp would win the coveted "Golden Broom." (Rumor has it that the trophy for the first games didn't make it to camp in time so they had to improvise and it's been that way since.)

(If you asked Padma, she would tell you that the whole day was a bit ridiculous. But then, memories of her sister--a flautist at the band camp--gloating every year would play in her mind and then Padma would have the urge to smash something.)

The band camp had won every single year Padma had attended camp so far. And according to older campers, that wasn't usually the case. Padma had a slight suspicion it had to do with a certain saxophonist named Harry Potter, who started at band camp the same year as Padma. Based on how long and grueling the last practice was, Padma could tell all of the senior campers to win this year, their last year.

Unfortunately for them, this year was turning out to be no different than previous ones. By the time lunch had rolled around, band camp had a solid lead, points-wise. After lunch had been the bane of Padma's existence: the aforementioned game of capture the flag, which the band camp won by the skin of their teeth, despite the admirable efforts of concertmaster Viktor Krum and first chair cellist Cedric Diggory.

Dinner was as delicious as always, in spite of the gloomy atmosphere permeating throughout the cafeteria. But Hogsmeade Day didn't stop there, oh no. There was one competition left, the most anticipated one of the whole day, the orchestra camp's last chance to pull a win this year: a skit show where various groups campers from both camps would perform skits judged by a panel of camp faculty. Even when everyone had been practicing for yesterday's end of summer concert, they had additionally been making sure their skits would go without a hitch by making props, rehearsing in front of friends, and even designing their own costumes. Padma was sure she saw Draco Malfoy secretly bring his personal tailor into last week's dress rehearsal just to take measurements for his group.

As for Padma, she and her other group members--Daphne Greengrass and Sue Li--settled on a skit rather quickly and had been rehearsing it at least once a day. Padma was already dressed for her part. She had on a dark blue button-down and high-waisted gray khaki skirt. In her hands was a highlighted blonde wig styled with bangs and cut in a bob-style fashion that she would put on later.

And now Padma was patiently waiting on her girlfriend. Well, if you considered tapping her foot anxiously and constantly glancing at the cabin clock every few seconds patient. 

"Yes, I'm quite finished," Luna's naturally soft voice said. Padma turned aroudn and felt her throat dry.

Luna was decked out in a nicely-tailored, form-fitting three piece suitl The coat, pants, and vest were made of a soft pink material. The white dress shirt underneath had a shimmery silver collar that was cinched together with an equally shimmery white tie. Her hair was tied up in its usual messy bun, but atop her head was a headband with a small, metallic top hat in the shape of a heart. To complete the look, Luna was wearing glasses that Padma was sure didn't have prescription lenses, but the dark brown frames accentuated Luna's cheekbones

"Luna..." Padma breathed out.

Luna grabbed her small backpack from the bunkbed she shared with Padma and kissed Padma's cheek. "I'm ready to go!" Luna said.

Padma swallowed heard. The urge to skip the skit show to tackle Luna and kiss her senseless was growing by the minute. She slowly breathed out and tried to make her voice as stead as possible. "Luna, love, you look amazing."

Luna beamed. Padma couldn't help but grin back. Luna took Padma's hand and they started their way to the amphitheater, where the skit show would take place. As they strolled through the camp, Padma couldn't help but reminisce, especially since everyone was leaving tomorrow. When the passed by the rehearsal hall, Padma remembered the first time she and Luna officially met.

* * *

_Padma had been up since 5 o'clock in the morning to squeeze in some last minute rehearsal time before chair auditions. It was the only time the practice room was ever free. She's seen what the others had been doing just to get thirty minutes at a normal time. Bribery, sabotage, pranks... if you could name it, it was done._

_She had just finished getting down a tricky passage when she heard a knock at the door. A girl with bedraggled blonde hair and pinstripe pajamas was peeking through the window. Fed up from having little to no sleep, Padma opened the door just enough to poke her head out and snapped, "What is it?"_

_The girl smiled at her serenely. She replied, "Just wanted to let you know that it's almost time for breakfast!"_

_Padma glanced at the sky. The darkness of the night was slowly fading away and pink and yellow swathes of light were settling in. Padma's face softened as she glanced back at the girl. "Thank you for letting me know. I'll be out shortly," she said._

_"Do you want some help packing up?" the girl asked._

_"Um, sure, yeah. That's very kind of you...?" Padma said._

_"Luna Lovegood," the girl replied._

_"Nice to meet you, Luna." Padma opened the door wider to let Luna in. "I'm Padma. Sorry for my attitude. It's been a stressful couple of days."_

_"Not to worry," Luna said. "I've had my fair share of dealing with stressed string players. Though, it's the first time I've been in the woods for it."_

_As Padma and turned to face the room, Padma felt her cheeks heat up in embarrassment at all of the sheet music splayed across the floor. Hurriedly, she put her viola and bow back in its case and asked, "Is this your first summer here? What instrument do you play? I'm not sure I've seen you around."_

_Luna started to pick up some pages as she replied, "Yes! I play the piano and harp, so I only attend rehearsals when Mr. Flitwick asks me to."_

_"Well, welcome to Hogsmeade Orchestra Camp! Hope you don'e get yelled at by more string players." Padma began picking up the leftover sheet music, but when she reached for the last piece, another hand covered hers. It seemed Luna reached for the same sheet at the exact same time. Padma look up into Luna's eyes and found she couldn't tear herself away from them._

_"It's no so bad to be yelled by you," Luna said breathily._

_Padma smiled._

* * *

"...Made it myself. It was a bit of of a short notice but Oliver, Audrey, and Marcus needed someone to fill the part in their skit!" Luna said cheerily.

Padma's brows knitted together in confusion as she tried to remember the line of conversation. "You're helping--what? How did you get roped into that?"

"I've been talking to Audrey throughout the summer because Ms. Sprout asked me to help the clarinet section with the piece they were working on. Audrey had been telling me about this weird tension between her, Penelope, Oliver, Marcus, and Percy ever since she was added to their polycule. When I was walking back to the cabin one day, I overheard a conversation between Oliver, Audrey, and Marcus about Percy and Penelope. Oh! I also saw this cool looking bug. I'll have to show you the photos later. I sent some to my dad. He'll be so excited to the biodiversity here. But anyway, I'm helping the three of them with the dating-show themed skit they're doing to help them with their relationship."

Padma just blinked at her. "Excuse me?" she said She felt her head get dizzy with the information. She was definitely to tired for this right now. Whether it was because it was Hogsmeade Day, Luna looking hot in a suit, or the thought of a skit whose sole purpose was relationship therapy, she wasn't sure. She shook her head to clear her thoughts as if that would help. "Luna, what? How is that supposed to help--"

"Ah, ah, ah," Luna tsked. "No more information. It'll turn out fine. You'll see. Ah, we're here." Luna kissed Padma's cheek before rushing the side of the amphitheater where Padma could see the vague outlines of Audrey, Marcus, and Oliver. "See you in there!"

Padma just looked after her bemusedly before going to find Daphne and Sue. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

The beginning of the show passed by in a blur. As someone with anxiety in front of crowds, Padma was just focusing on not hurling before her group went on. For some reason, the only skit that seemed to really stick out to her was Cormac McLaggen, dressed as a baby, being fed a banana. Weird.

Before she knew it, her group was up. On stage, Daphne and Sue were holding the sides a wooden frame large enough that the upper half of their bodies could be seen. There was a small wooden table in line with the frame. Before the lights were on them, Padma spotted Luna in the wings and Luna winked at her. Padma let out a heavy breath and plastered on a big, fake smile as she moved in the middle of the frame.

"Hi, welcome back to QVC. My name is Ashley and I'm here to introduce to you all about the wonders of a wonderful product known as the Rocque, patent-pending. Joining me are two customers who were and continue to be amazed and beyond satisfied with Rocque. Ladies? Would you care to introduce yourselves and speak to how the Rocque has changed your life?"

The spotlight turned off and Padma switched places with Daphne. It turned back on and Daphne, who was dressed exactly like Padma but with a purple button-down instead, brightly started, "Hi there! I'm Courtney and the Rocque has been a game changer in the kitchen. I used to have trouble with opening my cans with my fancy, too-expensive, electric can opened, but now that the Rocque has come into my life, I can say goodbye to unopened cans." 

On the small table was a can of green beans and a smooth rock that took Sue an absurd amount of time to find. Daphne turned the can on its side, and with a _WHACK!,_ she hit the can strong enough that the upper half of the can came off without any of the green beans spilling out. While Padma wasn't facing the audience, she heard them gasp and hid her smile. She knew Daphne had been practicing for weeks to get it just right and it seemed like her karate training had come in handy. With Daphne's satisfied smile flashing, the spotlight turned of again and Daphne and Sue switched places.

Sue was also dressed exactly like Padma and Daphne, but she was in a pink button-down. Once the light came back on, Sue was cradling the same rock Daphne had used (wiped off in between segments, of course). "Tiffany, here! Life doesn't seem as lonely, thanks to the Rocque! I've got a companion everywhere I go! I can even dress it up to match whatever I'm wearing!" Sue took a pink ribbon and tied a bow around the rock and she gave it a kiss. 

The spotlight turned off and Padma was behind the frame again when it turned on. "Thanks, ladies," Padma said with a pleasing smile. "I'm so glad that the Rocque was able to make a positive impact on your life. Now, if you at home are interested in purchasing a Rocque, do we have a deal for you! For only three payments of $19.99 you can get your own personal Rocque! But that's not all! If you call in the next thirty minutes, you an get a second Rocque for free! Yes, for free! Just call 777-77 and the Rocque can be yours today!"

The spotlight turned off for the final time and Padma heaved a sigh of relief as she heard the audience applaud. She quickly hugged Daphne and Sue and they scurried off stage. As Padma passed by the wings, Luna tugged her by the arm to give her a hug. "You did great!" exclaimed Luna.

Padma gave her a sheepish grin. "Thanks. I'm so grateful to be done. I'll be watching in the audience, okay?" Adrenaline and relief still coursed through Padma's veins and in a spontaneous burst, she kissed on the lips. In the midst of Luna's daze, Padma winked at her and whispered, "Break a leg!"

* * *

Time until Luna's skit passed in a blur. Padma could only vaguely recall Draco Malfoy's boyband skit, Harry Potter's skit about time travel, Greg Goyle's skit about the solar system, and her sister's skit about opera singing. Not long after that one, it was time.

* * *

The stage lit up and there was Luna holding a fake microphone and a serene smile on her face. Behind were were a wooden stool and three sets of PVC pipes acting as a door frame for floor-length curtains.

"Hi folks!" Luna said. "Welcome to this episode of Love Finds a Way. I'm your host, Luna Lovegood. For those of you new to the show, we have three lovely contestants trying to win the affections of one person in the audience! Of course, you won't get to see our beautiful contestants or hear what they actually sound like until the very end, so it's anyone's game! Contestant Number One, would you please say your name and which camp you're from?"

"Hi, uh," a chipmunk-like voice said. "The name's Mar--uh, Mark. And I'm from the string camp." A polite clapping came from the audience.

"Lovely to meet you, Mark. Contestant Number Two?"

"A medium pitched robotic voice came out. "My name's Lucy. Representing the band camp!" A cheer came up this time in addition to a slightly confused murmur. It had been a few years since a group consisted of campers from _both_ camps.

"Thank you, Lucy. Contestant Number Three?"

Silence.

"Contestant Number Three? Are you there?"

As Padma watched Luna display a look of confusion on her way to the third set of curtains, she had to hand to her. Luna was a _very_ good actor. Not that Padma had any doubts. Luna pulled the curtains back and to the audience's surprise, no one was there.

"Oh dear," Luna said with a pout, feigning sadness. "It seems as if we don't have a third contestant. But not to worry, everyone. Let's make this a special episode, shall we? Why don't we have the third contestant come from the audience as well? Unfortunately, we won't have the element of surprise for this this one, but we'll make do. My fellow producer, Oliver--" Oliver stepped onto the stage, a fake headset around his neck, "will be choosing one lucky person to play along. A show of hands, you beautiful people. Oliver, the floor is yours."

Several hesitant hands went up. A spotlight shone on Oliver as he contemplated the crowd. After a minute or two, he pointed to someone in the front row. A second spotlight shone on Penelope Clearwater. From Padma's perspective, Penelope look started and slightly murderous as Oliver held out a hand to her. Penelope only took it when Oliver arched a brow at her. Although Padma knew very little about Penelope, she did know that the only the thing Penelope hated more than humiliating herself was turning down a challenge.

Once Penelope was situated behind the curtains (and Padma wondered what must have been going on in Penelope's mind as she saw who the other contestants were, if she didn't know already), Luna beamed to the audience.

"Alright. Contestant Number Three, what is your name and which camp do you come from."

Penelope's crisp voice said, "Penelope. From the string camp."

"Excellent to have you here, Penelope. Now, let's find the lucky audience member who our contestants will try to woo! I'm going to ask the lovely Oliver to come out again and take his pick.

More hands than the first time went up, much to Padma's amusement. Among them were George Weasley, Terry Boot, Astoria Greengrass, and others. Oliver took longer this time, but Padma could tell it was just for show. Eventually, he pointed to another figure whose hand was not raised. Percy Weasley. Much like Penelope, Percy was startled to be chosen; however, he made no effort to move. It was only at his brothers' encouraging jeering and Oliver's outstretched hand that he made his way to sit on the stool.

Luna stood next to him and asked, "Welcome to the show, sir. What's your name and which camp do you represent?"

Padma saw Percy give Oliver a nervous look. At Oliver's smile and nod back, he said, "Percy Weasley. I am an oboe player at the Hogsmeade Band Camp." Padma had never such a prim person sound so sullen.

"Great. Now Percy, I'm going to ask you and our contestants some questions for you all to get to know one another. Ready?"

And they were off. One question after another. Favorite color. Favorite animal. Astrological sign. Favorite piece of music. Best way to relieve stress. Love language. And on and on and on. As the questions when on, Padma zoned out a bit but she notice Percy growing more and more anxious as he realized who _else_ was behind the curtains. To the audience, there didn't seem to be a clear choice.

"Alright, Percy. Now is the time to make your choice. Are you ready?" Luna asked him. Percy looked terrified and the audience waited with bated breath. With one brief look at Oliver, Percy said, "I...I cannot choose."

To everyone's surprise, Luna and Oliver beamed at him. "That's a great answer, Percy. Contestants, please come out from behind the curtains to reveal yourself to the audience."

Padma saw Percy become even more nervous, if that was even possible, as Marcus, Audrey, and Penelope all came out, each with different expressions on their faces. Both Marcus and Audrey had shit-eating grins on their faces, while Penelope looked pensive. 

The spotlight focused on Luna once more. "Well that's the end of our show folks! Our lovely audience member made a decision and the contestants were revealed! If there's one thing to take with you as we end, it's that as much as you may think you know about your partner, there's always more to learn and more to love. Thank you! Goodnight!"

With that, the lights turned off as the crowd clapped and cheered, though they were confused at what exactly happened. Padma watched as Marcus, Oliver, and Audrey tackle Percy in a hug, with a Penelope awkwardly off to the side. Blushing, Percy offered a hand to Penelope. When Penelope reluctantly took it, the four of them pulled her in so that she couldn't get away. 

As much as Padma felt like she was encroaching on a personal moment for them, she found that she couldn't tear her gaze away. It only broke when she felt someone's hand entwine with hers. A warm feeling blossomed throughout Padma's body as Luna kissed her knuckles and settled into the seat next to her. As Padma gazed around the amphitheater full of loud, rowdy campers laughing at the next skit on stage, Padma had a small realization.

Whatever the outcome of the whole competition was, Hogsmeade Day, and by extension Hogsmeade Orchestra Camp, may be the most stressful and ridiculous thing she had ever been a part of, but so long as she had Luna by her side, she found that she wouldn't have it any other way. 


End file.
